What You See is Not Always What You Get
by krazychik
Summary: Cole and Chris...besides both of their names starting with a "C" and both having crossed the paths of the Halliwell sisters, what else do these two men have in common? Read and find out...
1. Chapter One

"Wow, this shopping spree is amazing," Piper said contentedly, watching her sisters.  
"See? What did we tell you?" Paige commented smugly, working on her lip-gloss.  
"Exactly," agreed Phoebe as she carefully reapplied her mascara, looking closely into the mirror of the bathroom in the mall.  
"I feel so refreshed, you know? I mean, ever since I had Wyatt and all, I've been feeling, well, kinda old. This is a really nice change."  
"Yep, not to mention it's great sister bonding," Phoebe added.  
"And for a change, no de-"  
"Piper, behind you!" Paige yelled, cutting off Piper's sentence. Piper spun around just in time to get a glimpse of the demon before she was thrown against one of the bathroom walls, landing in a heap on the floor.  
The demon had created a fireball in his hand, ready to hurl it at Piper, when Paige screamed, "Fireball!" As the fireball orbed to Paige's hand, Phoebe levitated, ready to throw a kick at the demon. The demon caught her foot halfway and twisted it with a sickening crunch. Giving off a small outcry of pain, Phoebe fell to the ground.  
A gasp escaped Paige's lips at the powerfulness of the demon. Shaking off the shock, she flung the fireball at him. Easily, he disappeared before the ball even came close to him. It hit the wall with a bang, shattering the surface.  
Paige ran to her sisters. Piper slowly got up, but Phoebe was still down on the floor, grabbing her injured ankle. Taking Piper's hand and grasping Phoebe's arm, Paige orbed them back to the manor.  
Piper supported herself as Paige supported Phoebe and called "Chris!"  
The three sisters stood there, waiting for Chris to appear, which didn't happen.  
"Leo!" Paige tried.  
Leo appeared in front of them. "What happened?" he asked, stepping over to Piper and healing her. "And where's Chris?"  
"Demon attacked in the mall bathroom," answered Paige.  
"We called for him, he's not here yet," said Piper. Leo rolled his eyes and sighed, healing Phoebe. "So what type of demon was it?"  
"Very powerful." Phoebe nodded her head in emphasis.  
"Just like all the other demons that have attacked recently," added Piper.  
"Yeah, don't you think it's kind of strange how all of these demons are so powerful all of a sudden?" Paige said. "It kind of makes you wonder."  
"She's right. There's no way that it's just a coincidence that all these top notch demons are attacking all at once," Piper agreed.  
Chris orbed in. "Sorry I couldn't get here sooner, what did I miss?"  
"Sorry you couldn't get here sooner?" Leo mocked. "Where were you, Chris? They're your charges. They call, you come."  
"Hey, man, chill out."  
"Chill out? What would have happened if I wasn't able to come down here just now to fill in for you?"  
"Leo, calm down. I'm sure Chris has a good explanation for being late." Phoebe came to Chris's rescue.  
Everyone stared at Chris, waiting for his answer. For a moment, there was pure silence. Then Chris simply said, "I was busy. Is that a crime?"  
"It should be when the girls need you," Leo shot back.  
"Guys, give it a rest." Phoebe rolled her eyes. The guys just couldn't keep themselves from arguing with each other constantly.  
"Yeah, definitely," agreed Paige. "I'm gonna go and check the book of shadows. See if I can find anything on the demon."  
"I'll come help." Phoebe got up and followed.  
"And I'm going to go check on Wyatt," Piper declared. She too left the room.  
Leo and Chris glared at each other, trying to stare the other person down. Finally, Leo said, "I'm gonna find out what you're up to."  
"There's nothing to find out."  
"Yeah, right."  
Chris orbed out of the manor and back to where he had been before he'd been interrupted.  
"What was it?" a deep voice asked that came from behind Chris.  
"Nothing important, just the usual aftermath of a demonic attack," answered Chris nonchalantly.  
"Was it one of my demons?"  
"I'm not sure."  
"What?! We need to know stuff like this! What good are you if you can't even find out this information?!"  
"Good enough to know that I can ruin your whole scheme if I wanted to."  
The man halted in the middle of a blow he was about to inflict.  
"Face it, Cole. You may be the one with the big powers and the title of the re-erected Source, but I'm the one really in charge here." Chris said slyly before he orbed out.  
  
This is my first Charmed fan fiction, so please review. Thanks! 


	2. Chapter Two

"There's got to be some connection between all of these attacks," Paige said, flipping through the Book of Shadows to try to find the demon.  
"Definitely," Phoebe confirmed, pacing back and forth in front of Paige and the Book. "I didn't even know that many powerful demons existed at once."  
At that moment, Chris appeared. "Have you guys found any more information on the demon?"  
Paige closed the book defeatedly. "I don't think it's in here."  
"Again?" Phoebe sighed. "I have all but love for that book but lately it's really been letting us down. I guess we'll just have to figure this one out by ourselves again." She headed toward the doorway, followed by Chris.  
"Wait."  
Phoebe turned around. Paige's face had the look she always had when she was in deep thought and trying to remember things.  
"I think I've figured out the connection."  
"What connection?" Chris asked a little too quickly.  
Paige raised her eyebrows. "Between all the powerful attacks."  
"Just tell us already," Phoebe urged impatiently.  
"They haven't been in the Book of Shadows."  
"That's not true, I'm sure a lot were in the Bo-"  
"Oh my God, I think you might be right, Paige!" Phoebe cut Chris off mid-sentence. "Let's go tell Piper."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Leo walked slowly and quietly into the room in which Piper was feeding Wyatt. He just stood there, watching the two of them for a while without speaking. The scene was so peaceful and beautiful. These were the times when he truly appreciated life and everything in it, observing his son and the mother of his son in a safe, ordinary environment, having a mother-son bonding.  
Piper paused in feeding Wyatt for a second and sensed someone else in the room, but she didn't have to turn around to know that it was Leo. "You really have to lay off Chris, Leo," Piper said, keeping her eyes on Wyatt.  
And of course, Chris ruins the moment even when he wasn't in the room. "I have a gut feeling about this, Piper."  
"Leo, if Chris weren't here, we'd still be in the same place that we are right now. Nothing would be different between us. Chris had nothing to do with our breakup."  
"If I was still your whitelighter, and Chris hadn't manipulated things so that I would become an elder, then we'd still be together, wouldn't we?"  
"Leo."  
Leo put his hands on her shoulder and turned her around, looking her straight in the eye. "Answer me honestly. Wouldn't we?"  
Piper gently but firmly took Leo's hands off her shoulder. Giving him just as an intense look that he had gave her, she said, "I think you're letting our relationship, or lack thereof, cloud your better judgment."  
When Leo couldn't come up with anything to say in return to that, Piper left the room. 


	3. Chapter Three

"They're starting to connect the dots, Cole," Chris informed him.  
"No problem, we're already winning. They're not vanquishing nearly as many demons as they did before. Six of mine are still live and running. And I could create more anytime."  
Chris nodded in agreement. "Okay, well then, I'll just go and-"  
"Nonetheless, we need to start thinking about the final attack. Once we break the Power of Three, Phoebe will be mine and so will the underworld."  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"So, should I go for the white mini-skirt with the pink top, the black skirt with the green top, the white mini-skirt with the green top, or just the blue dress?" Paige laid out all her possible outfits for her date tonight in front of Chris.  
Chris sat on Paige's bed, thinking about what Cole had said earlier that day about the final attack. Sure, Chris had known all along that it would all end with that, but it had never seemed real to him until today, as it was now within reach. He'd never thought before now about how much he would miss this place and sisters' unconditional love and trust that he had. No one had ever given him what he was receiving from the sisters right now. It had always been from one foster home to another, his foster parents fostering him for the idea of the charity of taking care of a another child, but not for he himself. Then he was taken in by Cole, but their relationship had never passed beyond the business level. Here, in this house, for the first time in his life, Chris felt like part of the family. And he would have to give it all up. Sure, there had been times when Chris had considered actually telling the sisters about Cole and switching sides, but then, what would they think of him? They'd hate him and never trust him again and possibly kick him out. Then where would he have to turn? Not the sisters. Not Cole. Nowhere. The only choice he really had was to stick by Cole. Of course, Cole couldn't know how desperate he really was, or else Cole would take advantage whenever possible. Chris just had to stay tough on the outside and go along with the original plan.  
"Chris?"  
Paige's voice brought Chris out of his musings. He saw how beautiful she was as she held out different sets of clothing in front of him and looked at him inquiringly. He was going to have to hurt this beautiful creature. He hated himself. To Paige, he simply said, "I like the blue one."  
"Really? I do too." She threw the rest of her clothes onto the bed beside Chris and closed herself into her walk-in closet to change. "So what are you doing tonight?" She called to Chris from behind the door.  
Probably heading over to Cole's to plan your death because I'm a horrible person. "Nothing."  
"What? Chris, it's Friday night, you have to do something. Why don't you come to the club? I'm meeting Nick there. Phoebe, Piper, and Leo are all coming, too. Maybe you could even meet someone."  
Chris was about to decline this offer when a thought occurred to him. If he went, he wouldn't have to meet up with Cole. This was the perfect excuse! He would say that he had to do it in order to suppress suspicions. "All right then."  
"Awesome." Paige came out of the closet. "Could you tie me up in the back?" She looked gorgeous.  
"Yeah, sure," Chris replied breathlessly. He went over and took the two strings that she handed him from the top of her dress. Paige held her hair up as Chris tied her dress and smelled her sweet shampoo. He finished tying up her dress and she turned around. "You look great," he told her.  
"Thanks," Paige said with a wide smile.  
They shared a moment before Chris departed, saying, "I'll see you tonight, then."  
"See ya." 


End file.
